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Annual  Report  of  Free  Public  Library 


MAY  \,  1911  TO  JUNE  l,  1912 


FINANCE  ACCOUNT 

Unexpended  balance  from  proceeding  year . . - . S  25  00 

Receipts— Amount  received  from  tax  levy  (J700.00,  2  per  cent)  .  6SG  00 

-Gifts  . . - . . . . 

—Special  funds 


Total  Receipts 


5711  00 


EXPENDITURES 

Rent  . . . . . . . . S  01  00 

Janitor  service . . = . - . 

Salaries  . . . . .  385  00 

Repairs  and  improvements  . . .  8  23 

Furniture  and  fixtures  . .  0  72 

Printing  . 

Stationery  and  supplies  . 0  30 

Postage  and  express .  1  27 

Books .  104  59 

Periodicals . . 

Binding . . 

Insurance  . - .  9  40 

Miscellaneous  . 19  1. 


Total  Expenditures 


$o.'!7  70 
73  30 


Balance  on  hand . 

JENNIE  SCIIWERDTFEGER.  Secretary. 
BOOK  ACCOUNT 

Number  of  volumes  at  beginning  of  the  year . . 1305  volumes 

ADDITIONS  |  WITHDRAWALS 

Books  purchased . 127  Books  lost  by  borrower  . '•  l 


Books  donated  .... 
Magazines  bound 


.259 


Books  condemned . 

Books  sold  (2  ordered  for  patrons) 
Books  missing  . 


Total  Withdrawals 


Total  additions . ; . ; . 386 

Net  increase  during  the  year . . '• . . . 38j  volumes 

Actual  number  of  volumes  in  library  at  close  of  year  ....>. . 1090  volumes 

SPECIAL  EXPENSE  FUND 
(Collected  from  fines,  etc.) 


RECEIPTS 

Balance  on  hand  May  1,  1911  . SI  52 

Petty  cash  collected  by  librarian: 

Fines  on  overdue  books  .  21  14 

Damaged  or  lost  books  .  85 

Cards  to  non-residents .  1  50 

Sale  of  old  or  duplicate  books  .  3  00 


DISBURSEMENTS 
By  librarian  from  cash  receipts: 

Postage- . . .  2  3  50 

Special  cleaning  and  care  of  room .  70 

Freight,  express  and  dray  age . .  4  02 

Slight  repairs  and  binding  material .  2  51 

Incidentals  . . —  ”  45 

Teledhone  .  5  50 


Total  . 329  01 


Total  . 224  31 

Balance  on  hand  .  3  70 


SUMMARY 

(Compiled  from  monthly  reports) 

Tolal  number  of  volumes  . . 

Number  of  volumes  added  during  the  year . 

Visitors—.'. . . . . 

Total  circulation  during  year 
Largest  daily  circulation,  00  volumes. 


...1091 
...  386 
12449 


. .  7630 

Smallest,  6  volumes 

Average  daily  circulation  . 24  volumes 

Class  lu  which  gain  is  largest . . . Class  900 

Percentage  of  all  children’s  books  circulated  approximately  40  per  cent 

Percentage  of  adult  fiction  circulated  . . 45  Per  cent 

N  umber  of  books  rebound  . . 

X umber  ot  Doolcs  repaired  — . 7......  7...U  “  . - .  . 

N umber  of  newspapei-s  and  periodicals  currently  received 
Average  number  of  borrowers  each  month 


250 


wo 

22 

518 


Number  of  cards  held  by 


country  borrowers  .  3 


Number  of  days  open  during  the  13  months  . 

Hours  opeu  each  week  . - . . .  — 

BOARD  OF  LIBRARY  TRUSTEES 
T.  E.  Hogan  4-  Mrs.  H.  Stein 

W.  A.  Albers  5. 

Miss  Jennie  Schvverdtfeger  6. 


322 

30 


Fred  Naumer 
Mrs.  G.  C.  Dial 


7.  Charles  Alwert 

8.  W.  H.  Harris 

9.  Charles  Klitzing 
MRS.  MABEL  JEWELL.  Librarian. 


Dated  June  S.  1912 


TU 


AAXOJL Ay 


£3  /?/3 


DOES  THE  LIBRARY  PAY? 


The  Answer  to  This  Question  Is  Found  in  the  Following  Sketch — What  the 
Library  Is  Doing  for  the  People  of  Altamont  and  Surrounding 
Ccmmucities—  Its  Work  for  the  Year 


\ 


The  Altamont  >Free  Public 
Library  is  supported  by  taxation 
and  is  free  to  all  people  living  in 
Altamont.  It  was  established  as  a 
public  library,  March  io,  1908,  by 
subscription  and  was  made  a  free 
public  library  in  1909. 

In  1908  there  were  just  265 
volumes  and  the  library  now  has 
1950  volumes,  of  which  about 
40  per  cent  are  fiction. 

Most  of  the  class  books  are 
history,  biography  and  reference 
but  the  library  has  a  few  volumes 
on  the  questions  of  the  day.  By 
means  of  the  twenty-seven  periodi¬ 
cals  and  newspapers  the  latest  in¬ 
vention  or  the  latest  thought  on 
any  subject  can  generally  be  found. 
Many  people  visit  the  library,  each 
month,  over  five  hundred  books 
being  loaned  on  an  average  and  the 
questions  asked  at  the  desk  show  a 
variety  of  wants.  One  will  ask  for 
the  writings  of  some  philosopher; 
another,  the  latest  book  on  enter¬ 
taining  and  so  on  down  to  picture 
books  for  children  not  yet  able  to 
read. 

Often  books  are  asked  for  that 
the  library  does  not  have,  in  which 
case  it  is  the  librarian’s  duty  to  try 
to  get  them  or  find  out  where  and 
how  to  get  them.  The  system  in 
use  is  the  one  most  generally  used 
in  public  libraries. 

Rules  are  few  and  simple, — 
the  work  of  keeping  records  of 
books  loanded  is  so  simple  that  the 
public  is  not  often  kept  waiting. 
Sometimes  a  question  is  asked  and 
answered  over  the  telephone.  The 
library  has  a  German  collection  of 
about  eighty  volumes,  the  greater 
part  being  fiction. 

On  the  juvenile  shelves  will  be 
found  wholesome  books  to  suit  all 
tastes,  for  the  children  are  the 
library’s  best  patrons.  With  the 
best  books  before  them  the}'  are 


1  earning  the  value  of  books — they 
are  learning  how  good  it  is  to 
know  something  of  the  best  things 
men  have  thought  and  said-  and 
done  in  the  world. 

Through  the  public  schools  of 
our  town  the  library  is  doing  some 
of  its  best  work, — it  may  supply  a 
book  to  illustrate  some  lesson, 
loan  a  collection  of  books  for 
special  study,  collect  material 
for  a  debate  or  instruct  a  class  in 
the  use  of  reference  books.  The 
library  also  supplies  most  of  the 
volumes  of  standard  literature 
which  are  used  by  the  pupils  for 
supplementary  reading  and  tends 
to  make  the  children  of  Altamont 
good  readers.  Give  children  the 
ability  to  read  well  and  the  library, 
when  they  have  left  school,  gives 
them  the  opportunity  to  continue 
their  education  through  life.  For 
the  library  is  the  college  to  many; 
and  to  others  it  is  a  means  of  in¬ 
creased  earning  power. 

Books  will  be  found  here  which 
will  increase  their  efficiency — no 
matter  in  what  line  of  work  they 
are  engaged. 

In  general,  it  may  be  said  that 
those  who  seek  information  on 
practical  subjects  will  find  it  at  the 
library;  those  wrho  seek  learning 
and  culture  will  find  the  writings 
of  the  master  minds  of  the  past 
ages.  And  those  who  are  tired 
and  worn  out  from  their  day’s  toil 
will  find  the  lighter  works  of  ad¬ 
venture  and  imagination,  which 
will  transport  them  from  the  worries 
and  troubles  of  every  day  lire  10  ^ 
land  of  fancy  and  enchantment. 


QUtb£^^Cr>-l^f  /***  /iM-t— 

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